It's best to stick to the beaten track at first, which is where we will point you to here. If you find yourself in the wrong place, you may be oh-so-politely tolerated, perhaps ignored, or-in the very worst case-refused service and asked to leave (yes, it sometimes happens). However, if you're an innocent to the language and the culture, such serendipity can be rare. Passageway of LGBTQ bars in Shinjuku 2-Chome, Tokyo The hapless foreigner who wanders innocently in off the street via close echoing staircases or a clanking old elevator may actually find himself lucky, at least for a time. With individual bar space at a premium, there is little room for diversity.
Those who come are generally regulars, and generally subscribe to a particular scene, or, in Japanese, sen: short for senmon: "specialty," area of expertise'. To map these dialects out would take a decade and superhuman catholicity of taste.Īlley in Shinjuku 2-Chome off the main Nakadori AvenueĪt any one time, most of the bars represented by these signs each hold no more than about 15 people - max! In a space this small, the "master" ("master-san"-or "mama-san" - to the customers) defines who comes. The names themselves form a delightfully diverse vocabulary possible only in Japan where English is still foreign enough to treat entirely as you please and whose meanings and associations have a Japanese-shaped history of their own. New Sazae and other gay bar names in Shinjuku 2-Chome, Tokyo But each speaks the dialect of a particular scene. The colors, shapes, sizes, fonts all talk about being gay. The whole area is a crazy checker board of lit-up bar signs. Glance into the foyers of buildings and up at their sides for confirmation. The abundance of bars in Shinjuku Ni-Chome is something easily verified by a ten-minute stroll around its narrow precincts. Signs for gay bars in Shinjuku 2-Chome, Tokyo Street of bars in gay Shinjuku Ni-Chome, Tokyoīut until you come to Japan you are unlikely to have seen just what a scene can be in a way that is as concrete, organized, established, and taken for granted as it is in that focus of gay Japan: Ni-Chome. Shinjuku Ni-Chome also stands out for its multifariousness. Tokyo does have major gay and lesbian club nights (see, for example Gay/Lesbian What's On), but not in Ni-Chome.Įverything is tiny, but it's there in great abundance. You are not going to find any big establishments with a capacity of any more than a few dozen people. Compared with the gay quarters of major Western cities, 2-chome stands out in two ways: first for its small-scale profuseness.īackstreet gay bars in Shinjuku Nichome, Tokyo That alone makes Shinjuku Ni-Chome something to write home about (or at least text your besty). Shinjuku Ni-Chome is the gay center of Tokyo, which is the world's largest urban agglomeration, with over 34 million people.
The Takara Building in Shinjuku Ni-Chome, full of gay and lesbian bars Then, venture into the alleys of Ni-Chome and, bang, you're going to be surprised at how much you didn't count on seeing. Shinjuku Metro Promenade Exit C8 - you can walk all the way here underground from Shinjuku Stationįrom Shinjuku Station, go all the way along the underground Metro Promenade to Exit C8. Shinjuku 5-Chome Higashi intersection - turn right here off Yasukuni-dori Avenueįrom Yasukuni-dori, turn right at Shinjuku 5-Chome Higashi intersection. Shinjuku 2-Chome intersection - turn left here off Shinjuku-dori Avenueįrom Shinjuku-dori, turn left at Shinjuku 2-Chome intersection (at the big Sekaido art and crafts store). Not even 10 minutes walk from the east side of Shinjuku station, 2-Chome is as unremarkable from the outside as any Japanese street block. Rainbow Flag at Gapan Cafe, Shinjuku 2-Chome, Tokyo Ni-Chome never sleeps, and offers something for the gay visitor any time of day or night (but especially at night!) Shinjuku N-Chome is a dense, multifarious neighborhood of tiny bars and club. You've just come to Tokyo, you're passing through Tokyo, you've just come out in Tokyo, you're "curious" in Tokyo - whatever it is, there's Shinjuku Ni-Chome (knee-cho-may: "Shinjuku block no.2"). "Naka-dori," the main street of gay Shinjuku Ni-chome
How to hit Ni-Chome: a guide to Tokyo's gay town ゲイ新宿2丁目